Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1887-11-24
DRIVE WELLS.
The Recent Decision OF the United
States Supreme Court Effectuaiiy
Heads of an Obnoxious System
of Extortion--HoW Green Over.
reached Himself.

The Recent Decision OF the United
States Supreme Court Effectuaiiy
Heads Oft an Obnoxious System
of Extortion--How Green Over
reached Himself.
There is rejoicing among the farmers o.
the land. says the Chicago Herald. at any
rate rejoicing among that portion OF the
agricultural community which a been
afflicted by the clamor OF Hdriye- we'll
fiends. Nelson W. Green, the alleged In
ventor OF the device, obtained his patent
Jan. ID, 1868, which wsts reissued
May o, 1871, upon an amended
his patent. He not only sold state. but
| county and township rights at enormous
prices, which the purchasers OF these pat
ent rights could well afford to pay. because
the ruling price to be paid by a iat mer Tor
a well sunk by the simple eontrivance
was $40 FOR o well OF q diameter OF one
and & quarter inches. There was a slid.
Ing. or rather rising. scale, governed by the
diameter and depth of the well, the power
By which II was to be operated and the
yield OF water per minute. until in some
Instances 4 price of S4o0 was reached.
This amount exceeded by far tile price for
an arteeian well OF tie same capacity, and
was ten fold that OF the ordinary stone
well. The price Of SO Tor the small-sized
well, while not much in itself, was by far
too much for the service rem
dered. No farmer would have paid it had
he not been forced to by a combination OF
the patent-right holders with the drivers
The usual proceeding was that the 'driv-
era' would put in the well for n moderate
amount, and suhse iuently the owner OF
the right would come along and claim his
royalty, which he WAS in every case able
to collect, because he was backed up by
numerous court decisions. All these
decisions are now worthless, since
the supreme court OF the United
State has declared the drive well
patent invalid. This last decision WAS
reached on the ground that the Invention
was used in public at Cortland By others
than Green more than two years before the
application Tor n patent was NADIA TACT
which, under the law, is fatal to the patents
validity.
Had the patentee and the men To whom.
he sold his rights been less grasping they
might have enjoyed a princely income for
the time the patent lasted, hut their ava.
rice caused the collapse. The magnitude Of
the case will be understood when il is stat.
ed that the number Of drive wells In the
country reaches nearly . million, about
seventy Ave thousand being ID the
State of New York. Tile patentees in
Minnesota were worse than those OF any
other state. Quite recently they sent cir-
culars to owners OF driven wells that In
RINGERS on the Grces patent must pay $40
on a certain date. Those who did MT
comply with this cool demand were mott
fled that they must pay $36.5o-S30 ms
the figure reached BY trebling the dam
ages, Sc court costs and so cents for post.
age.
Former decisions, even one included by
the highest tribunal, proved to be in favor
OF the patentee. The patent has been the
subject OF extensive litigation. IL was first
held valid by Judge Benedict. in 1876, in
the leading case OF Andrews against arman.
This decision was followed by nine others,
rendered by judges Dillon. Nelson, Ores
ham, Blatchforj, Nixon. Wheeler, Nc
Creary and Shipman. lntwo OF the recent
cases-Andrews against Gone and Andrews
against Hovey-the patent was for the
first time held invalid by Judges Love,
Shiras and Nelson, OF the courts below, on
the same grounds given by the United
States supreme court decision in the
Hovey case. The later decision, of
course, overrides the one in the IA
nous Eames.Andrews case Of
the October term, 1885. In che Eanes
case no such testimony as In the Hovey
and Gone cases was introduced. The fact
that the invention had been in public use,
with the knowledge and consent Of Green,
for m ore than two years prior to the 81.
ing OF his appliCation, rendered the patent
invalid. OF course. this decision ION
suits all claims now pending in the courts
all over the land against alleged gers
OF the patent. The grasping disposition OF
the patentees and the continuous litigations
combined to make the Green patent more
odious than any other, but the task of
fighting It Was tremendous. 1t was finally
accomplished BY d comparatively unknown
lawyer-Jed Lake OF Independence. Iowa
who worked for a fee of 500 a day, and
worked perhaps two hundred days on the
case. At least $100. 900 has been spent
by both parties to the litigation just ended.
have, OF course, no means OF recovery,
unless they a prove fraud or false repre-
tations.